Gonzalo Tiesi is using his international snub by Argentina as added motivation to start the season on fire for Newcastle Falcons.

The 29-year-old has been capped 37 times by Los Pumas, but was among a raft of senior players omitted by coach Daniel Hourcade last month as they prepare for the upcoming Rugby Championship against New Zealand, Australia and South Africa.

Making no attempt to hide his emotions about being dropped, Tiesi admitted: “It is just a selection thing, and I am not injured.

“It is the first time in 10 years I have been left out when I am fit, and it is a hard one for me to take.

“I felt I had a good run of games for the Falcons at the end of last season, so I was fit and playing pretty well.”

Turning to the future as Newcastle prepare for the Premiership kick-off at Leicester Tigers on September 6, the former Harlequins, Stade Francais and London Welsh man said: “I have been left out now, and I have to get over it.

“I have a new challenge with Newcastle rather than playing for Argentina, and the upside is that I have the opportunity to do a full pre-season.

“I have never been able to do that before with international fixtures and all the rest of it, and if I deliver for the Falcons hopefully I can get called in again by my country.”

Tiesi has been back in the North East for a fortnight after having his return delayed by visa issues, revealing: “We had a baby boy, Gonzalo, at the end of last season, but he came two weeks late and we had to wait two to three weeks in Argentina to get his documents sorted.

“I spent that time with my family in Buenos Aires, and with the World Cup football being on it was a crazy atmosphere around the place.”

Landing on Tyneside just a day before Argentina contested the final, Tiesi linked up with another well-known countryman to see them losing at the death to Germany.

He explained: “I watched it with my friend Fabricio Coloccini, who plays for Newcastle United.

“Juan Pablo Socino, my new Falcons team-mate, was there too, and it was great having an Argentinean-style barbecue even if the result was not what we wanted.

“There is not too much of an Argentinean community in the North East, so we catch up with guys like Fabricio and Jonas Gutierrez, and a few others that we know.

“There is a butcher in the area who gets us the specific cuts of meat we Argentineans love to eat, and it is great for our families to have that link. It means we get the best of both worlds.”